Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Islam Reading Chapter 2

  • The Muslim lifestyle is based on faith in God, leading a morally upright life, following a set of daily rituals to remind oneself of his or her allegiance to God, and doing good to improve lives of all living things.
The Core Beliefs of Islam

  • Seven Core Beliefs:
  • Belief in God
  • Belief in the angels
  • Belief in the revealed Books of God
  • Belief in God's many prophets
  • Accepting that there will be a last day
  • Belief in the divine measurement of human affairs
  • Belief in a life after death
We All Have the Same God

  • The Qur'an says that Allah is the same God for Jews and Christians
  • Proper name for the deity cannot be made plural or altered in any way in Arabic grammar.
  • The Islamic Concept of our place in the universe hinges on the notion that Allah is the only true reality
  • Nothing is permanent other than God
  • Proof to God's existence: The natural world; human abilities such as thought, creativity and morals; God's guidance and the existence of religion; and our inner feelings
The Universe is Muslim
  • Two categories: whatever is surrendered to God's will and whatever is resisting his will
  • God established all natural laws and every physical material in the universe is surrendered to his will
  • everything does what is was created to do
  • Islam: means to surrender to Allah and to acquire peace, someone/thing that does this is called a Muslim
  • Animals and plants are also Muslim because they follow their innate instincts, God taught them how to do what they do
Aladdin Rubbed the Wrong Lamp

  • Jinns are similar to genies, portrayed as wild and crazy spirits
  • Jinns are the cause of superatural phenomena and paranormal events
  • Jinns inhabit another dimension in which you cannot see them
  • they can be good or evil
  • Jinns are made out of the residue or scorched fire
  • Muslims believe that it is Jinns who haunt houses, spook animals, give predications etc.
Touched By and Angel

  • Islam accepts the existence of angels
  • they are made of light energy and can materialize into any form they need
  • Jibra'il: brings revelations to prophets
  • Azra'il: angel of death
  • Mika'il: controls the weather
  • Israfil: blow the horn signaling the end of the universe
  • Job of angels: look for people who are praising God and join them and watch over people
Accepting the Burden

  • Long before God made people he offered the gift of self awareness and free will
  • gave us the ability to choose between right and wrong
Was God Right to Make Us?

  • God created Humans and Jinns for the sole purpose of serving Him and surrendering to his will
  • Islam says that our most basic needs are fulfilled on the ultimate level when we achieve union with God's goodwill
  • religious people live longer because they are calmer and freer from stress
  • Allah wants us to Love him as much as he loves us, but he is not dependent on our love
Soul Soup

  • Allah gave humans free-will, self-awareness, intelligence, reason and a moral compass or fitrah
  • our brains respond to religious stimuli and cause us to feel euphoric
  • Fitrah: inner nature or moral compass it steers you to seek out religious experiences and directs you to the existence of God
Our Compass Points Inward

  • The mere application of reason alone as a means of solving the world's problems may appear a valid procedure on paper
  • We all desire personal pleasure and the fullfillment of our animal urges
  • These are the instinctual motivations that cause us to hoard food, procreate, and gather wealth
  • reason alone cannot guide us to right actions cause of animal urges
  • Muhammad once said that every child is born with a natural inclination to surrender to Allah
  • A childs fitrah influences them to believe in God
  • we have the choice to surrender to allah or reject him
Can you Stand on One Leg?

  • The very purpose of our existence is to use our eyes, ears brains, emotions, and fitrah to realize we must surrender to God
  • we will live stress free in harmony if we dont fight against Allahs way

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